Population

Location, Environment and Population

//From Bedouininfo, the free wikispace//

The Bedu people, commonly referred to as the Bedouin people by westerners, are located in several nations in the middle east; the Deserts of Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Kuwait, Yemen, Oman, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Egypt. The area of the Bedu homeland extends over 2.5 million square KM (1 million miles), approximately the size of western Europe. The number of Bedu who call this area home is unknown. Most estimates figure that the Bedu population is about four to five million; a little over half the population size of New York City. About 10% of these Bedouins live the traditional way (which will be described in detail by another member of the group).



The Middle East, and Northern Africa consists largely of desert. The Region is the world's richest in oil and gas reserves, but also one of the poorest in renewable water resources. Large quantities of oil come most often from Saudi Arabia. The United States, and other countries rely heavily on the oil that comes from Saudi Arabian wells, and those of neighboring countries. Oil is found in several regions of North Africa and Southwest Asia. The Southern and southeastern part of the Arabian peninsula northwestward around the rim of the Persian Gulf, reaching into Iran and continuing northward into Iraq, Syria and Southeastern Turkey produces a large percentage of the world’s oil. It continues to rely excessively on natural resources for its sustainable development. The terrain can be very mountainous in countries such as Afghanistan and Iran, but there is also flat desert in Saudi Arabia. The Middle East can get incredibly hot and dry, which presents issues for Bedouins throughout the region.